From Mexican street food to fruity frozen treats to over-the-top takes on classic sweets, the Alamo City showcases some of the most unique and delicious eats that can only be found here. We’ve scoured the city to bring you a diverse array of vendors, each with their own twist on local and regional culinary traditions.

Whether you’re a local or a visitor, consider this your short list when you’re looking to indulge in the puro flavors of San Antonio.

Ice Ice Baby Multiple Locations, instagram.com/IceIceBabySa Whether you’re craving fruit slathered in chamoy, Hot Cheetos and Takis as a topping on a decked-out mangonada, ice cream topped with heaps of candy and other treats, or anything in between — there is no end to the creative Mexican-inspired snacks Ice Ice Baby has lined up for you to choose from. Credit: Photo via Instagram / iceicebabysa
El Chango Loco 1909 Pleasanton Road, (210) 437-1254, instagram.com/elchangoloco_treats Sure, El Chango Loco brought the pickle Fruit Roll Up (a pickle wrapped in a fruit roll up, sitting in a bed of candy and Hot Cheetos) to San Antonio, but it also serves up a host of other mouth-watering snacks in addition to the “pickle enchilado.” Credit: Photo via Instagram / elchangoloco_treats
Smack’s Chicken Shack 125 Lamar St., (210) 870-3242, facebook.com/smackerelsa Now operating as a food truck, Smack’s Chicken Shack serves up some seriously unique chicken sandwiches as specials in their rotating menu. Past sandwiches have included the Donut Chicken Sandwich, the Chicken Katsu (which started it all), the Concha Chicken Sandwich, BBQ Mac & Cheese Sandwich and many more. Credit: Photo via Instagram / smackschickenshack
Las Nieves Multiple Locations, lasnieves.net A classic for puro snacks, Las Nieves is a dependable spot for nieves, raspas, fruit cups y mas. Any order can be topped with spicy and sour additions that make these treats all the more authentic. Credit: Sanford Nowlin
Aloha Shaved Ice Fruit Cups And More 11761 Blanco Road, (210) 994-9002, facebook.com/AlohaShavedIce With a Hawaiian theme inside, Aloha feels like an island oasis. Of course, there’s cold treats like shaved ice, fruit cups and even a Sandia Loco that will have you salivating from all the Tajin you add. But Aloha also has classic snack stand treats like corn in a cup — this is San Antonio, after all. Credit: Photo via Instagram / alohashavedice
The Dogfather Multiple Locations, sadogfather.com The Dogfather offers a variety of dawgs for every mood, from the Plain Jane to the Hot Cheetos, queso and fried jalapeño-topped Ratchet. The hot dog purveyor kicks it up a notch with weekly specials like the Barbacoa Dog, Pizza Dog, Mushroom Kingdom and Mango Tango. Credit: Photo via Instagram / thedogfathersa
Chamoy City Limits 24188 Boerne Stage Road, chamoycitylimits.com Chamoy City Limits is a puro AF truck — just take the name as proof. Previously appearing at special events and pop-ups around town (at Feliz Modern and O.P. Schnabel Park), then as a brick-and-mortar location for a while, this establishment keeps Tex-Mex treats from raspas to chili coming. Chamoy City Limits is reopening in May 2023 at food truck haven The Point Park with a revamped menu. Thankfully so, ‘cause they are super tasty. Credit: Photo via Instagram / chamoycitylimits
Kuma 7915 W. Loop 1604 N. #120, (210) 999-5829, instagram.com/kuma.satx While the number of spots serving up Asian-inspired treats has grown in recent years, Kuma was among the first, and remains a unique ice cream shop in SA. Here you can score ice cream served in Hong Kong-style waffles, complete with creative scoop flavors and toppings. Credit: Photo via Instagram / viki.mel
Lucy Cooper’s Ice House 16080 San Pedro Ave., lucycoopers.com A lot of menu items at Lucy Cooper’s are delicious as heck, like the Cheeseburger Eggrolls and Chicken Fried Deviled Eggs. One over-the-top selection definitely worth a try is the Tin Can Nachos. Housemade tortilla chips are stacked in layers and topped with refried beans, queso, taco meat and pickled jalapeños. Half the treat is removing the tin can and seeing this goodness ooze out in front of you. Credit: Photo via Instagram / lucycoopersicehouse
El Tropico Multiple Locations, facebook.com/ElTropicoIceCream Perfect for cold treats like ice cream, shaved ice and milkshakes, El Tropico is also a prime spot for bionicos and chilindrinas. The shop also has decked-out nachos made from Tostitos, Hot Cheetos and conchitas. Credit: Photo via Instagram / eltropicosa
Munchies Shakes, Snacks and More Multiple Locations, munchiesnacksa.com With a name like Munchies, you can expect all the snacks here to hit the spot. From cold Mexican drinks to decked-out desserts and snack foods that will have you breathing heavily, the snack game is taken seriously here. Credit: Photo via Instagram / munchiesnacksa
Los Cocos Fruteria Y Taqueria 1502 Bandera Road, (210) 431-7786 In addition to serving up some refreshing fruit cups, Los Cocos also makes a lot of scrumptious Mexican fare from the taqueria portion of its business. Here you’ll also be able to find tamales, which are actually enormous and super flavorful, wrapped in banana leaves. While you may not order a dozen to go, you’ll be happy stopping in for a fix here. Credit: Brandon Rodriguez
Malik’s Philly’s Phamous Cheesesteaks Multiple Locations, maliksphillysphamous.com Pretty much everything on the menu at Philly’s is decked out enough that it’ll hit the spot. Consider the fries the best though, especially the bacon cheese ranch option. Credit: Photo via Instagram / phillys_phamous
PB&J With Tay 5335 McCullough Ave., (210) 518-8299, pbjwithtay.com PB&J with Tay nails the classic sandwich’s homey qualities while also elevating it well above what the humble sando ever aspired to be — the Rocky Road, for example, has almond butter, marshmallows and Nutella. Sweet-and-savory sandwiches abound on the menu, like the Elvis, which includes bacon and peanut butter. Credit: Photo via Instagram / juanjmendoza82
Elotitos Multiple Locations, (726) 999-2609, elotitossa.com Devoted entirely to Mexican street corn, Elotitos even includes a corn flight on the menu — five different corn flavors in mini cups for the indecisive or the adventurous. Pair it with the aqua fresca flight for a particularly niche snack experience. Credit: Photo via Instagram / elotitos.sa
Hanamaru Cafe 7460 Callaghan Road #333, hanamarutx.com Hanamaru Cafe made its debut next door to Minnano Japanese Grocery in 2022. In addition to offering sweet and savory versions of fish-shaped taiyaki cakes and cones with soft serve ice cream, Hanamaru offers Hawaiian spam musubi and a number of mouth-watering Asian-inspired snacks on its menu. Credit: Photo via Instagram / hanamarucafetx
Wicho’s Mexican Deli 1110 N. Zarzamora St., (210) 396-7539, facebook.com/wichos.deli Head to the West Side and let Wicho’s satisfy every snack craving you could ever have. On top of Mexican grub and burgers, Wicho’s also serves up traditional ice cream treats and smoothies, plus all the flashy treats you know and love. You’ll seriously feel at home here. Credit: Photo via Instagram / wichos_deli
Mochinut Multiple Locations, mochinut.com LA-based Mochinut has built a fanatical local following by serving a variety of flavors of rice flour doughnuts, including raspberry, coffee, guava, matcha and banana. The Instagram-worthy donuts aren’t all that’s on offer — Mochinut’s menu also features soft serve ice cream, “mochinut-balls,” and a variety of Korean hot dogs, including a Hot Cheetos-encrusted option. Credit: Photo via Instagram / mochinut_sa
Barrio Barista 3735 Culebra Road, (210) 519-5403, barriobarista.coffee Okay, it’s true that Barrio Barista’s menu has only a few super-stacked options. One item is quite literally what a snacker’s dreams are made of, however:the Westside Special. A barbacoa grilled cheese sandwich with avocado and complete with a cup of tomato basil soup promises to sate your snack cravings. Credit: Photo via Instagram / theritzinsa
Go to Chacho’s after 2 a.m. While good for late night tacos and nachos, Chacho’s is also known for being pretty shady at night (don’t @ us). Stay out of trouble and hang out somewhere else. Credit: Michael Karlis
The Pigpen 106 Pershing Ave., (210) 267-9136, thepigpensa.com The Pigpen is a good bet for brunch — though there will definitely be a wait. Those that want to skip the line can come at another time and snag an order of loaded nachos. Credit: Photo via Instagram / the_pigpen_bar
Big Poppas Tacos Various Locations, (210) 320-0465, facebook.com/bigpoppastaco Targeting the hoodrats of San Antonio, the Big Poppa’s Tacos truck posts up at a range of clubs and bars around the city, including Sugar’s, Blue House Bar and Lounge and Bentley’s Beer Garden. The menu features the aptly named Hoodrat Burger, which contains pastor, lettuce, tomato, ham, avocado, mayo and (naturally) Hot Cheetos. Credit: Photo via Instagram / bigpoppastacossatx